April 5, 2011

Vegan sweet and sassy black bean soup recipe

Back in the day -- which was quite a few years ago -- a couple of friends and I met in my kitchen to collaborate on a dish we called South End Deep Root Chili, so named for the root canal one of those friends had endured earlier in the day. In fact, and in spite of its name, the chili was one of our finest creations, and to this day it's a favorite in my kitchen. This soup is an adaptation of the original chili recipe: more liquid, of course, and agave nectar to replace honey. If you don't want to use agave, go ahead and add a few teaspoons of brown sugar. Make the soup as hot and spicy as you like it, but don't omit the sweet or the lemon; they give this black bean soup its sass.